Want to train cardio? Then pick up a bar
Burn fat and improve cardiovascular health while retaining lean muscle mass by swapping steady-state cardio for high-volume, low-weight lifting, says Layne Norton Dr Layne Norton is a physique coach and natural pro bodybuilder and powerlifter, who holds a PhD in Nutritional Sciences. He is based in Tampa, Florida. One new technique I’ve been trying out with my clients is lifting weights for cardio. My friend Professor Mike Zourdos at Florida Atlantic University has been looking at, instead of doing intervals or low-intensity cardio, actually lifting for cardio by doing more volume with a lower amount of weight. There is some evidence…
Maintain muscle while stripping fat
Dr Jacob Wilson is director of the skeletal muscle and sports nutrition laboratory at the Department of Health Science and Human Performance at the University of Tampa. Ryan Lowery is senior research scientist at Department of Health Science and Human Performance at the University of Tampa, with a focus on sports nutrition and supplementation. In the Western world there is a prevailing mentality of wanting things instantly, especially in the field of fitness. We don’t have time to wait for the results of our hard work to be realised. We want to be lean and ripped yesterday, and not have…
The magic of metabolic flexibility
If your body can switch efficiently between using different energy sources as fuel you hold the key to a stronger and leaner physique,…
Why you need to think before you eat
Taking time over each meal will raise your awareness of what you’re eating and why and make sticking to a diet easier, says John Berardi Dr John Berardi is a nutrition and exercise coach, sport scientist, author, and a founder of Precision Nutrition. He is based in Toronto, Canada. Iron Insights Don’t eat when stressed There’s a lot of speculation and discussion right now on whether eating when in a stressed state has a negative effect on how your body digests and absorbs nutrients. We don’t know for sure, but I imagine that it does have some sort of impact. Take…
Why most people misuse sleds
When used properly, pushing a prowler can do far more than make you feel sick, including improving explosive strength and adding muscle mass, says Jack Lovett Jack Lovett is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Spartan Performance. He a two-time British natural strongman champion and world natural strongman competitor. He is based in Consett, County Durham. Watch videos on YouTube of people using sleds and prowlers and it’s easy to assume that personal trainers simply use them to make their clients sick. It’s very simple to make someone very tired very quickly using these bits of kit, but that’s…
Are you ready to build your best-ever body?
Nick Mitchell is a leading body composition expert and the founder of the Ultimate Performance global personal training gym. He is based in Los Angeles. When I was approached late last year by a book publisher wanting the definitive guide to a successful body transformation, I needed a guinea pig to put through my 12-week training and diet programme. Not just to appear on the book’s cover, but more importantly, to prove that some of my newest ideas for creating the best physique possible in the shortest conceivable time frame can really work in the context of a generally attainable four…
Only frauds offer a magic solution
The fitness industry is full of people handing out unqualified advice, and trusting them to find a quick fix to your problems will cost you time and money for no end result, says Layne Norton Dr Layne Norton is a physique coach and natural pro bodybuilder and powerlifter, who holds a PhD in Nutritional Sciences. He is based in Tampa, Florida. Iron Insights Hard sell There’s so much competition in the fitness industry that people feel compelled to sell a magic solution. But there isn’t one. All I care about is results, which is why all I talk about is the…
Could a keto diet be the future of fitness?
Research into the potential benefits of following a high-fat, low-carb diet could not only improve your physique, but also be the key to living a longer, fitter and mentally alert life, say Jacob Wilson and Ryan Lowery Iron Insights Carb considerations So much research needs to be done around keto dieting, including how the introduction of a small amount of carbs around training could help performance and aesthetics, whilst staying in ketosis. Protein impact We also need to examine how high protein intake can go before the body moves out of ketosis because this could have a profound impact on…
Learn to prioritise or you’ll get mediocrity
If you want to maximise how effectve you are both inside and outside the gym then you need to learn how to flip priorities, says Ben Pakulski Ben Pakulski is a IFBB Pro bodybuilder and creator of the Mi40 Nation website. He is based in Tampa, Florida. 1 Learn to be lazy Managing priorities is definitely a skill I’ve had to learn. Prior to being a pro bodybuilder I barely slept. My friends would always say to me ‘it’s okay to sit down once in a while’. When I became a competitive bodybuilder I had to learn to be lazy…
